EUROPE - A populist government in Rome, political instability in Madrid, democratic crises in the east and a transatlantic trade war to the west: the European Union faces threats and challenges on multiple fronts. While Italy is clearly the most pressing danger facing the 28-member bloc, it is not the only one. Asked this week if Rome had become Europe's Achilles Heel, Gianni Riotta from the Council on Foreign Relations joked: "How many heels can Europe sport? Greece, the United Kingdom, Poland, Hungary -? too many, I'd say."

USA - Technology gives us the opportunity to wage war from afar at a greatly reduced risk to our armed forces. But is removing the horror of war a slippery slope to reducing the threshold for conflict?

Going to war usually boosts a politician’s approval ratings and can be a useful distraction from domestic problems. Yet public opinion typically turns sour when a steady stream of soldiers start returning in body bags and candid reportage from the war zone reveals unpleasant truths. The public’s distaste at seeing ‘our boys and girls’ returning in coffins or missing limbs somewhat hampers the abilities of warmongers to fulfil their wishlist. In the early days of drone warfare both the US Air Force and Britain’s Royal Air Force (RAF) operated drones flying over Afghanistan from Creech Air Force Base in the Nevada desert, 7000 miles away.

USA - Defense Secretary Jim Mattis has claimed that since Beijing’s South China Sea policy contradicts Washington’s strategy of “openness,” the US will have to “compete vigorously” wherever cooperation is impossible. “The US will continue to pursue a constructive, results-oriented relationship with China, cooperating when possible and competing vigorously where we must…” Mattis stated, speaking at the annual Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore. “China's policy in the South China Sea stands in stark contrast to the openness our strategy promises, it calls into question China's broader goals,” the US Defense Secretary added.

USA - The CEO of one of the world’s most popular social media networks found himself criticized by the company’s shareholders, who took a dim view of his leadership methods. Mark Zuckerberg, CEO and founder of Facebook, faced a barrage of criticism from shareholders and calls to change the “company’s governance” during a recent annual meeting, The Guardian reports. Christine Jantz, one of the shareholders who attended, blasted Facebook’s stockholder voting structure, which effectively allows Zuckerberg to control the majority of voting power in the company without owning the majority of its stock, because his shares have more voting power than those of regular investors.

USA - Long ago, in a universe of sane fiscal policy far away, there existed an institution, then new to the world of international banking and finance, called the Federal Reserve Bank, whose primary concern of the day — the day being its founding on December 13, 1913 — was to have very large reserves of cash backed by even larger reserves of gold that were enough “to earn the public trust.”

USA - Governor Jerry Brown is retiring but not before he passes a few draconian laws as parting gifts for California. Two bills were signed into law on Thursday of last week to “help California be better prepared for future droughts and the effects of climate change.” The mandatory water conservation standards will be permanent, according to their wording, and not just for use in times of crisis. To make a long story short, now that these bills are law, it’s illegal to take a shower and do a load of laundry in the same day because you’ll exceed your “ration.”  

USA - According to the Fed, there were 6,065,000 working age Americans unemployed in May. That would be an excellent number if it was an honest number.  But of course that number does not tell the whole story. We also have to factor in the other category of working age Americans that are not currently employed.  They are not considered to be “officially unemployed” because they are considered to be “not in the labor force”.

USA - You Need to Understand Twisted but Clever Logic Used to Drive Political Exploitation of Climate and Environment. In 2003, the late Michael Crichton gave one of the most germane speeches about the challenges we face today.

USA - A meeting between leaders of the US and North Korea will take place in Singapore on June 12, US President Donald Trump confirmed after receiving a senior official from Pyongyang at the White House. Kim Yong-chol is among the most senior officials in North Korea, a rank for which he was previously blacklisted by the US. He arrived in the US to deliver a letter from Kim Jong-un to Trump. After the meeting in the Oval Office, Trump walked Kim and his delegation to their car, an honor usually reserved for a select few foreign dignitaries. He confirmed that the scheduled meeting, which had earlier appeared to be in jeopardy, will take place.

SYRIA - The Daily Telegraph reports: The US should learn the lesson of Iraq, President Bashar al-Assad said on Thursday, threatening to expel American troops from Syria and retake areas from its Kurdish allies. In the interview with RT, the Russian state’s international broadcaster, Assad raised the prospect of conflict with US forces if they do not leave Syria. He vowed to recover territory where American troops have deployed, either through negotiations with Washington’s Syrian allies or by force. Assad, who is backed by Russia and Iran, appears militarily unassailable in the war that has killed an estimated half a million people, uprooted around 6 million people in the country, and driven another 5 million abroad as refugees.

USA - President Donald Trump wants to use trade policy to squeeze German carmakers so that there are no Mercedes-Benz models driving down New York City’s Fifth Avenue, according to a German magazine citing unnamed US and European diplomats. German business and current affairs magazine Wirtschaftswoche reported that President Trump told French President Emmanuel Macron in April that he would push German automakers out of the US market altogether. Shares of German automakers fell Thursday following the report. The top German carmakers also own several brands not necessarily always thought of as “German” cars. Volkswagen controls Bentley, and Bugatti. BMW owns Rolls-Royce.

EUROPE - Europe could take control of Italy's finances if the country's two Eurosceptic populist parties manage to form a government, a German MEP has said. Markus Ferber said the EU Commission, European Central Bank and International Monetary Fund may have to 'march into Rome' if the 5-Star Movement and League parties push ahead with their proposed programme of tax cuts and spending rises. Asked about the crisis on Wednesday, Mr Ferber said the worst outcome would be that Italy goes bankrupt. 'Then the Troika would have to march into Rome and take over the Treasury,' he told German broadcaster ZDF.

UK - Scientists have discovered two fault lines running under London that could cause a magnitude 5 earthquake. But before you reach for your hard hat, they estimate there is only a one-in-a-thousand-year chance of such a tremor. Researchers from Imperial College pinpointed the two faults moving between 1mm and 2mm a year, one running directly under central London and another under Canary Wharf. They say the chance of an earthquake is “enough to be scary but not fundamentally a problem”, according to Dr Richard Ghail, a specialist in civil and environmental engineering at Imperial College.

USA - One trade war may be enough to push the struggling global economy into another recession, but the US government has apparently decided that it is time to fight trade wars with pretty much all of the major economies around the world at the same time.  This is utter insanity, and it is going to have disastrous consequences that will be felt all over the planet. 

EUROPE - European leaders appear to be “confused” by US President Donald Trump's decision to impose trade tariffs on aluminium imports from Canada, Mexico and the European Union, former hedge fund manager Jim Cramer said. Mr Cramer, who hosts CNBC’s Mad Money, said European leaders are in “over their heads” as the trade battle continues with Donald Trump.